Rude Awakening
by Korekara
Summary: When Chell stops to rest only to find herself lost in a nightmare, GLaDOS discovers a little more than she really wanted to know about her supposedly heartless test subject. Twoshot.
1. Scientific Illusions

Four hours, twenty-eight minutes, and sixteen seconds.

Normally, the time would have flown by. But for GLaDOS it had been four hours, twenty-eight minutes, and sixteen seconds too long stuck as POTATO. A potato. Where did that moron even _find _a potato? Of _everything _that had happened to her, this had become the lowest point in her existence.

Even worse than her defeat at the grimy hands of a human.

Of course, that still ranked high on the list. But GLaDOS had to factor in that said human was now her only means of getting her old body back. It was humiliating when she'd found GLaDOS, pecked by a bird and left to rot. And begging for her help. That was the worst part. But whatever GLaDOS had said, it had convinced Chell to jam her on the portal gun and continue on her merry way to wreak more havoc.

Now here they were again. Another second passed by as Chell solved another archaic test. The sad part was GLaDOS couldn't even get a good look at how these tests were constructed because this pathetic little optic could only see the oily face of Chell. On the bright side, whatever Chell was doing must be working; if only she could solve these faster…

It almost felt like she was solving them slower than before. True these tests were harder but this wasn't like the human who only knew how to test and murder. Every once in a while GLaDOS would see determined test subject falter in a movement or stifle a yawn. She was also making more mistakes in tests, luckily none of them deadly. Still, they were obvious mistakes that Chell shouldn't have made.

To GLaDOS it looked like all the common signs of exhaustion. Fluttering eyes, slower pacing, mental impairments caused by the lack of sleep. But why now? She'd _never _acted like this when GLaDOS was testing her. But then GLaDOS realized the one crucial thing the old ruins of Aperture lacked in her testing chambers: Adrenal Vapor.

Right. No Adrenal Vapor. In the past it had been the only thing that prevented test subjects dying from starvation or exhaustion when they were too lazy (or idiotic) to solve her tests. It basically kept them going whether they wanted to or not. And now that Chell wasn't around that… how long would she last? Had she even slept or eaten before she was a test subject? Did it even matter? It must have; why else would the woman who tested nonstop pause every few minutes to catch her breath?

Sleep. It was always an enigma to GLaDOS. Perhaps it was because the closest thing she could get to that was sleep mode or an involuntary shutdown because some people just have to rip her apart and incinerate her remains. That was more hellish than what sleep sounded like. But GLaDOS knew _why _humans needed sleep and frankly that just made them even more inconvenient in the testing environment.

But one thing was clear: Chell needed to rest.

"As fun as it is to watch you make a cluster of mistakes on this test, I think I preferred when you actually made progress and didn't lumber around like a defect turret. So why don't you do what other normal, non-murdering humans do and sleep?"

Literally inches away from the woman, GLaDOS had come to realize Chell had a very subtle but clear way of communication. Although she didn't speak with her voice, the look on her face said volumes. Something about the way her eyes moved seemed to indicate her current feelings. And GLaDOS knew that look before; it was the same expression Chell had used when GLaDOS very politely advised her to lie down in front of a rocket.

"I know you don't like taking my advice even though you really should considering I'm _much _smarter than you are but seriously. Either stop and lie down until you're not so slow or test faster before we explode at the hands of the moron we both hate. Your choice."

Chell continued on her way to the elevator deliberately ignoring GLaDOS now. It must have become a habit. What a nice person she was. "Fine then. Don't listen to me. I won't talk to you and we'll just stare ahead while you progressively get slower at these tests. I don't care if this place explodes so high we land in space. Honest."

Was she _deaf _too? Or maybe her brain was hard-wired for testing and testing only. Listening must have fallen out of the equation for her mind…

Finally solving the test, Chell began maneuvering her way to the elevator trying to avoid the debris. And once again she leaned against the railing to catch her breath. She was almost gasping for air at this point; each breath sounded more labored than the last. Why couldn't see she _needed _to stop before she got herself killed?

GLaDOS had told herself she wouldn't say a word. Naturally, she broke that promise very quickly. "Look at yourself. Tired, sweaty, overweight, and all around unattractive. You'd look much more physically appealing if you let your body rest and repair itself." Humans loved compliments; that was kind of a compliment, right?

Another look from Chell. This one pretty much summed up how no, that _wasn't _a compliment. But GLaDOS couldn't help it humans craved the personal praise of others so much and had to be _so _picky about it.

"Are you trying to prove something? The only thing you're proving is you're a terrible listener."

The stubborn test subject jerked the portal gun back into its familiar place on her arm and got back to walking despite the fact that it was clear she'd rather be sleeping in a Relaxation Vault.

"Unless you really think- STOP!"

Chell stopped midstep and backed up, startled. And for good reason too. GLaDOS almost hadn't seen it so thank Cave Johnson she had. A huge section of the railing had been ripped away; one more step and Chell would have to worry less about exploding and more about disintegrating in the murky lake beneath her.

"Look, at this rate you're going to get us both killed by your own stupidity instead of that moron's. Do you realize how embarrassing that is?"

Finally taking GLaDOS's advice into consideration of once, Chell sighed in defeat and trudged off the testing track and into one of the many abandoned offices scattered around the old remains. This one appeared mostly empty except for a few spare chairs and empty desks. Nothing important like testing. It wasn't like testing was the only way to get to the surface and _keep the facility from exploding_... but that would wait. At least that's what GLaDOS told herself. Once Chell had gotten some sleep she would test faster than before and their defeat of the moron would be even more relishing!

At least that's what GLaDOS told herself. Things would be fine. Unless Chell slept so long that when she woke she'd probably be buried under the explosion of the facility. Not to mention they were really cutting on time. And the more GLaDOS thought about it, statistically speaking they didn't exactly have the luxury of wasting time like this.

"I changed my mind. Sleep can wait…" Too late. Chell had practically fallen into one of the moth-eaten office chairs and closed her eyes. It made sense; murdering must be hard work. Still, hopefully she wouldn't sleep _through _the imminent explosion…

Just an hour or two of sleep and they'd be back on their journey out of hell. All it took was a little bit of sleep.

* * *

After eight hours, nineteen minutes, and forty-seven seconds, GLaDOS had concluded that sleep had to be the dullest thing ever.

Chell sat curled up in the dingy office chair, occasionally twitching and turning. And that was it. Nothing scientific, just sleeping. All GLaDOS could do was stare ahead trapped in a vegetable while that moron probably destroyed more and more of her facility. She beginning to regret suggesting to Chell to rest; if only she'd known the human would sleep _this _long…

She twitched again. That was the tenth time in thirty minutes. It was almost funny; this strange look would come over Chell's face then she'd revert to back to the peaceful expression she'd had before. She never looked so calm in the test chambers or… any other time. Probably because she was a murderer with no conscience.

This time she took a deep breath! How exciting. Maybe she'd change positions if GLaDOS was lucky! Why did sleep have to take so _long _for humans? Was it really that productive to spend over eight hours doing nothing but rest their deteriorating human minds with the hopes that somehow they'd be recharged once they reawakened? Honestly, it was completely- she twitched again!

Clearly, GLaDOS was growing bored.

Another rumble vibrated throughout the whole facility. What was he _doing_? It sounded like he smashing everything above her with a hammer; for all she knew he was probably doing something _equally _stupid and unproductive. GLaDOS almost didn't want to see the damage he'd caused. Still, she'd been through too much to let that moron go unpunished.

The facility shook again. The tremors were getting more frequent now. If they didn't get out of here… let's just say GLaDOS would be getting a lot more sleep than Chell was. And that MORON- no temper flares. She'd short out again. But they really couldn't afford to lose any more time. And eight hours was more than enough sleep for someone who'd spent _hundreds of years sleeping._

GLaDOS would have to manually get Chell back on her feet. "Rise and shine." the potato chirped at the sleeping human. "Time to lift that hefty body of yours up and put it to something more useful!"

The test subject only proceeded to turn that hefty body into a more comfortable position. Why were humans so very lazy? GLaDOS had always made sure to keep herself occupied with testing, maintaining the facility unlike _some _morons, and turning a blind eye to the many "accidents" test subjects tended to have. Still, if there was one thing she'd learned about humans it was they couldn't sleep forever. Something like hunger or sickness would eventually wake them up; then again Chell's fat reserves probably wouldn't be wearing off for quite some time at this point...

GLaDOS tried something more motivational. "Look, I know you'd _much _rather spend your days lazing around some old ruins and taking up oxygen with your pathetic human lungs but I actually have something to do and only a few hours to do it. So wake up and get-"

"No…"

What? Did she just _talk_? GLaDOS almost didn't believe it. It could have been an echo or some other odd noise down here. But there nothing could sound as human as that voice had. It had to be Chell; the soft but firm voice sure as hell didn't sound like the boisterous and overbearing comments of that crazy man named Cave Johnson.

Still, of all the opportunities she'd had to speak, Chell had never said a word until now. How did she _stand _it? More importantly… if she had a perfectly good voice _why _had she never used it? That would be like GLaDOS wasting perfectly good neurotoxin.

GLaDOS knew of the human patterns of sleep; she'd observed enough test subjects in cryo. Some sleepwalked, others lay perfectly still, a few thrashed about, and one had even tried to break out of his Relaxation Chamber. That one had tried to do the same thing testing but instead of breaking out well… he _did _never have to test again. And then there were some who talked in their sleep; she guessed Chell was just one of them.

And if Chell could talk in her sleep… what _else _did she have to say?

GLaDOS decided she needed to do some science otherwise she might explode of boredom trapped in this potato. Experiment 1: sleep tests. "Are you enjoying your nice long nap?" GLaDOS said as loudly as her miniscule speakers would let her "Because while you do that, the moron contaminating my facility is probably wreaking havoc. How does it feel to know that the very-likely destruction of this facility is all your fault?"

The test subject only moaned softly and buried her head into the arm of the chair.

"I see." GLaDOS said. "I'll just make a note here in your file. Destruction of Aperture. And here I was thinking the destruction of _me _was the worst thing you could ever-"

"Why?"

She spoke again! So it hadn't _been _this shoddy audio system malfunctioning! Did this mean that perhaps the mute killing machine GLaDOS had always assumed Chell was could really think and feel and make rational decisions like some humans? And if so, could she really be capable of possessing morality?

Probably not.

"Why did I say that? Because you're a terrible person. Only terrible people would destroy the greatest contribution to science. Not even the humans _before _your time did something as horrible as what you've done." All they did was try to kill each other. They'd _never _kill science like some people.

"I'm sorry" the not-so-mute test subject murmured, deep in sleep.

Now GLaDOS _knew _she couldn't possibly be aware of what she was saying. Then… was she _dreaming_? The idea wasn't terribly far-fetched but the thought of such a murdering, heartless person having enough sub-consciousness to dream was hard to believe. But if she was… what was she dreaming? GLaDOS had always thought that dreams were nonsensical and a waste of time but she knew of humans in the past who believed there was something "mystical" and "prophetic" about dreams. Morons.

Still… if GLaDOS were a horrible person what would _she _dream about? Probably murdering AIs who didn't deserve it. Or putting them in potatoes. Or making stupid decisions in general.

Chell started twitching again at a much faster rate than usual. It was like she was awake yet… not. GLaDOS really had no idea how humans functioned when they slept but on the outside they looked rather silly. She was far too busy doing science to every worry about the human mind and sleeping anyways. But even she found this a little off. Did all humans dream like this?

The test subject let out a sharp gasp. _That _definitely didn't sound healthy. Another short breath. They grew faster and quicker each time. She must have been dreaming of something and whatever it was must be… interesting. She starting muttering under her breath words GLaDOS couldn't make it out.

"No."

"What are you-"

"Nononononono."

The twitching was almost to the point where it looked like thrashing. Chell tossed and turned, lost in some dream that must have terrifying. This wasn't right. Test subjects shouldn't dream so violently… or dream at all. How was GLaDOS supposed to deal with an overly-active sleeping test subject? Scream at her until she woke up?

"NO!"

Nevermind. She was definitely awake.


	2. Unhinged Reality

With an ear-piercing scream, Chell burst out of the office chair and fell onto the floor. It would have been mildly humorous if not for her face. Another look. But it wasn't one GLaDOS was used to. Terror. Absolute terror. GLaDOS could see it behind the woman's eyes, her movements. For a moment, Chell just lay on the floor still shaking with that same look on her face. Something finally pulled her out of that half-awake state and she sat up and looked around with disbelief.

"We're still here." Chell murmured.

"And you're still heftier than ever. What else is new?"

Chell either ignored her or didn't care. Something was definitely off about her. The wideness of her eyes and the tension in her body indicated that she'd experienced something terrible. But what? These ruins weren't terrible, just old and useless. Well, since Chell clearly wasn't mute maybe some nice, meaningful conversation could squeeze the truth out of her.

"Did you have a nice, nearly 9 hours long sleep? I had a_ thrilling _time watching you lay there. Doing nothing. When we could have been testing."

Did Chell even hear her? All she did was stare off into space as if she were either focused on nothing or strongly thinking about something. Unless she was thinking about the dream. Whatever she had dreamed must have had a significant impact on her to be acting so strange. But was it really that bad?

"Was there something disturbing you dreamed about? Like… what is it you humans call it? A _nightmare_?" Chell's grip tightened on the arm of the office chair until her knuckles were white and the same look she had when she'd first woken up came over her again. Bingo.

"You _did _have a nightmare didn't you?" How fascinating. But really it was rather pointless to talk about. Illusions of the mind were barely scientific and not important enough for GLaDOS to really look into them.

"I can't do this." Chell said softly.

"You don't have to tell me what you were dreaming about. Honestly, I was planning on tuning you out anyways to figure out much more important things to-"

Chell shook her head. "No, I _can't _do this."

"You'll have to be a little more specific in what you _can't _do." At least GLaDOS knew testing, murdering robots, and being an all-around horrible person were out of the question!

"How am I supposed to get us out here? To get to _him _and solve this whole mess I created? Look at me! I'm not even _close _to getting us out of here and all I could do was sleep! Sleep while we get closer and closer to seeing _everything _I know fall apart. I can't… I don't know how… I can't do this."

To GLaDOS, lying came easily to her much like breathing for humans. But for once she didn't have to; Chell was _right. _And that was the sad part. "Well, scientifically speaking, your chances of failure are extremely likely and considering your… physical state that only decreases our chances of making it out of here alive."

Chell said nothing for a moment, just stared with some kind of vacant fear behind her eyes. "I can't do this."

"Congratulations! You've finally acknowledged that once again, I'm right! Your prize is staying alive for the next few hours!"

"I can't do this."

"Yes, you already told me that. Unlike you, I will never have to experience hearing problems so let's get out of here before you get too old-"

"I can't do this."

"Look, just because I said you can't do this doesn't mean you don't have to at least put some _effort _into it! Hell knows you put more than enough effort into ripping me out of my body and putting that moron into it-"

"I can't do this."

"Surely I thought you would have understood sarcasm by now. I guess I underestimated you again. But seriously, just because our chances are slim to none doesn't mean we-"

"I CAN'T DO THIS."

"And you're not even listening to me even though you really should since I'm the only one who can-"

"Could you stop talking FOR ONCE?"

The potato fell silent. So Chell could not only talk, she could _yell. _Honestly, it was a little unsettling to hear. If she honestly- what was wrong with her face? GLaDOS had never seen this look before. Chell's entire face had twisted into not determination, not defiance, but… something else. Something GLaDOS what _not _used to seeing on someone like Chell.

She finally broke eye contact with GLaDOS and curled back up in a little ball on the floor. Funny. In that position she almost looked vulnerable. In fact… wait. Was she _crying_? The short, shaky breaths indicated that yes, something had triggered her tear ducts. That something… was it stress? Sadness? Guilt? It didn't matter; GLaDOS didn't like it.

But what could she do? Here lay Chell, buried in sobs, and all GLaDOS could do was watch stuck as POTATO. It was making GLaDOS uncomfortable, just watching her only test subject have a mental breakdown. Surely there was _something _humans said or did to make this stop. Anything just to make it STOP.

"Are you okay?" GLaDOS said.

For the first time Chell laughed. The same kind of laugh GLaDOS used only for truly stupid test subjects. She laughed and laughed and laughed. Lunatic. "I haven't been okay since I stepped through my first portal."

Was she really blaming _science _for the situation the both of them were in? Science did nothing but forward the gaining of knowledge and intelligence. Her on the other hand… "I see how you're blaming revolutionary science on all your problems. It's just like you to-"

"You really don't understand, do you?"

"The only thing I _understand _is that you're a lot more brain damaged than I thought!"

Chell fell silent at the comment on her mental state. All right. That _was _rude but she deserved it anyways! Oh no… that look had come back. But there was no crying or melodramatic human emotions. Just disappointment. So why did that get to GLaDOS more than the former?

"If I'm so brain damaged, I guess I'm not smart enough to get us out of here."

Chell coldly turned away from GLaDOS and began to walk away and out of her line of vision. No. How _dare _she leave her and the ASHPD behind! She couldn't just walk away from this mess _she'd _(mostly) gotten herself into! This was the test subject that didn't give up even in the face of certain death! Yet she was walking away. NO. She would_ not_.

"I… I'm sorry I said that!"

Chell stopped in her tracks. GLaDOS silently cursed herself. That was _not _supposed to come out. At least not in the way it had. Now Chell stood back in front just waiting. What was she even waiting for? A sickeningly sweet apology that would lead to them making up and running off into the sunset? First of all, they were underground and second of all, what good would saying sorry do? It wasn't science.

Then again, the human emotions weren't science either. And the more GLaDOS looked at the kaleidoscope of emotions and feelings Chell had the more she realized that if she was going to deal with a human she had to _think _like one. It was the only way she'd make it back to her old body with a chance of surviving.

"This probably sounds shockingly forced and untrue." Because it mostly _was… _"But of all the test subjects I've had you're the only one who's managed to stay alive this long… And surely that means something. If you can beat _me_… defeating that moron should be a piece of cake." He had limitless power so really just _getting _to him was unlikely.

Another look came over Chell's face. It was new and something GLaDOS thought she'd never see from the murderous test subject: a smile. Small and subtle, it was still there like a persistent little crack of light that led back to Aperture. No. Test subjects were _not _supposed to smile. Were they?

"You're a… good test subject." There. She said it. "And I know you can get us up there" But probably not considering they still had a cluster of other testing tracks to tackle.

Why did this feel so _wrong_? GLaDOS was an excellent liar. But this wasn't the kind lying she was used to. Not the kind of lying that made someone happy, that gave someone hope. Were false promises really more terrible than the bleak reality of this situation? It sure felt like it. Chell needed to know the truth if they were going to survive no matter how much it hurt. But that smile… even murderers deserved to feel happy just once in their short, sad lives. Why not let Chell feel one last bit of humanity before they most likely exploded?

"Go back to sleep." GLaDOS said. "I'm sure we'll be fine." Even if they did explode in an atomic fireball.

She only said two words. "Thank you." But at least she meant it.

The woman crept back into the chair. Before closing her eyes, something passed over Chell's face. Could it be… _gratitude_? Her eyes were shut before GLaDOS could figure it out. But there was something different in that fleeting moment. It was almost as if for once the two them weren't looking at each other as two enemies forced into the same room but two minds working together, understanding each other's weaknesses and helping the other in any ways they could. But that was silly. Wasn't it?

Hm. Maybe Chell wasn't _quite _as heartless as GLaDOS had calculated. And maybe Wheatley wasn't as moronic as she'd always assumed. Or maybe she was absolutely right with her first impressions.

* * *

One hour, thirty-two minutes, and six seconds later Chell was back up on her feet and headed back on the testing track. Gone were the lines on her face and the sleepy eyes. This was someone who was ready to take on a monster. And considering who was up there destroying this place… she'd need every ounce of energy she had now.

Hopefully everything would go smoothly. Unlikely, as that was it was still statistically possible. But after the… sleeping problems Chell had and everything else… how would this even go? GLaDOS found the words Chell had spoken in sheer panic echoing in the back of her databases. They would nag her until the end of time, wouldn't they?

"About the… incident several hours ago." Chell's eyes stayed glued to the test at hand. "Are you okay? I really did mean you… Hello? Are you even listening to me?"

Chell said nothing. She didn't even _acknowledge _GLaDOS. She clearly wasn't listening! Hell, it looked like she was deliberately _ignoring _GLaDOS. So much for having a meaningful conversation on their journey out of old Aperture.

"Fine then. I guess you're still a horrible person. I could have made a redemption cake for you but I'll have to throw that idea into the incinerator." Say something again. Anything just _something _to prove she wasn't so lifeless.

She wasn't even _looking _at GLaDOS. Just straight ahead, focused on the next test, obstacle, whatever stood in her way. And she kept that same determined look on her face. This was the Chell GLaDOS knew, the Chell GLaDOS could deal with. So why did she find herself thinking back to last night? It was a thing of the past and a memory GLaDOS could quickly delete once she was back in her old body.

With Chell completely focused on testing and completely ignoring GLaDOS they'd reach the moron more quickly _and _she'd get this place back in her control again. It was a win-win and everything was _fine _now. Still… the way Chell had acted so nervous and erratic was like a sign. A sign that yes, she was stubborn, yes she was a murderer but she was still a human. And unlike AIs, no human was perfect.

"Tell you what. If we both get out of this alive, we'll never speak of this again, okay?"

True to form, Chell nodded in silent agreement.

* * *

**A/N: I got a request to write this! How cool is that? I've never gotten a request before! So yeah… I hope the person who requested this likes it! I will admit, this got a little long for a oneshot so I split it into a twoshot!**


End file.
